12 SEP 2024 · Many scholars, energy experts, and federal politicians agree https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2024/05/13/power-grid-transmission-lines-electricity/ and increasingly ineffective at meeting the demands of the 21st century. Power demand over time, or “load growth,” has reached historic heights with the expansion of artificial intelligence, electric vehicle ownership, and American manufacturing. As a result, utilities like Arizona Public Service have warned they may run out of transmission capacity by https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2024/03/07/ai-data-centers-power/.
Real and imagined climate-fueled energy disasters such as 2021’s Winter Storm Uri or a recent https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona-environment/2023/05/25/phoenix-is-not-prepared-for-a-simultaneous-heat-wave-and-blackout/70252691007/#:~:text=ENVIRONMENT-,Phoenix%20is%20not%20prepared%20for%20a%20simultaneous,and%20blackout%2C%20new%20research%20shows&text=If%20a%20five-day%20heat,a%20new%20study%20has%20calculated., have heightened our awareness of grid-related risks. Whether the focus is climate adaptation or mitigation, our success depends on an increased and secure energy supply.
Michael Skelly, founder and CEO of Grid United, U.S. wind energy pioneer, and the protagonist of the 2019 book https://www.amazon.com/Superpower-Quest-Transform-American-Energy/dp/1501163582, first recognized and began addressing this dilemma decades ago.
Through more than 10 years of developing wind projects, Michael encountered firsthand the limits of renewable energy potential within the existing grid. Solar and wind are intermittent and regionally specific energy resources. Current infrastructure does not allow pathways for these abundant and inexpensive supplies to reach the entirety of the nation. His company Grid United is hoping to change that, with strategic grid-to-grid transmission development projects.
Listen in as Ten Across founder Duke Reiter and Michael Skelly discuss an emerging joint effort between the public and private sectors to revolutionize transmission planning and development and realize the U.S. electric grid of tomorrow.
Relevant links and resources:
https://www.insideenergyandenvironment.com/2024/06/ferc-issues-order-no-1920-to-accelerate-regional-transmission-planning/#:~:text=Planning%20Horizon-,Order%20No.,a%2020-year%20minimum%20horizon. https://www.insideenergyandenvironment.com/2024/06/ferc-issues-order-no-1920-to-accelerate-regional-transmission-planning/#:~:text=Planning%20Horizon-,Order%20No.,a%2020-year%20minimum%20horizon. (Inside Energy & Environment, 2024)
https://www.euronews.com/business/2024/01/16/uk-and-denmark-launch-viking-link-underwater-cable-project (Euro News, 2024)
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/08/28/opinion/solar-power-free-energy.html (The New York Times, 2024)
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2023/06/12/climate/us-electric-grid-energy-transition.html (The New York Times, 2023)
https://news.mit.edu/2022/perovskites-solar-cells-explained-0715 (MIT News, 2022)